Friday, May 27, 2011

AND GOD SAID
Our first glimpse of God in Scripture is a glorious display of the power of words. We are introduced to a Creator God who simply spoke things into being. “And God said…” and it was.

Wouldn’t you love to have been there? Wouldn’t you love to have heard God’s words and watched in wonder as those words brought sun and stars, grass and trees, fish and birds into existence? Imagine being there to hear Him speak again as He looked at the result of His words and said, “This is good!”

We are created in His image, and I believe included in that “image” is the gift of words—words that still contain power to create things which are good. We are made in the likeness of a communicator who formed us to want to talk and write and connect with one another through words.

I am writing this while attending Colorado Christian Writers Conference in Estes Park, Colorado. Many of us have come here with pages filled with words, and the hope that some publisher or some editor will look at what our words have created and say, “This is good!” We are our Father’s children and we have things we want to say, and stories we want to tell, and we want to do it well.

However, as I look out my window at the beautiful snow-capped mountains of the Rockies, I realize that for some things—some of the “good” things God created—words are inadequate. I have also sat during our times of worship as we have attempted to use words to express our love for God and the wonder of who He is, and once again, have encountered the limitation of words.

But the Creator God has been here with us at this conference. We have felt His presence, and the same God who spoke these amazing mountains into being is still speaking. We’ve heard Him. His voice has created a longing for a closer walk with Him. He has uttered words that have produced a heart that is broken for the persecuted church. His voice has brought encouragement out of the chaos of discouragement and despair. God’s words still have the power to create—to bring something from our nothingness. How I pray that the results of His powerful words during these days will again be something He can look at and say, “This is good!”

Esther lives in Mifflinburg, PA with her husband Peter. Their own personal nest is now empty with the exception of Peter’s mother who is 93 and suffering from Alzheimers. Esther is her care-giver. Peter and Esther share 9 children and 19 of the cutest and smartest grandchildren ever. She loves to read, bake, and quilt.

For over 25 years Esther was in full-time ministry. She enjoyed many opportunities to share the things of God through speaking at retreats and conferences. She is now expanding that ministry through her writing and presently has a book The Sweet Side of Suffering under consideration by a publisher. She also has a devotional blog entitledhttp://viewfromthesparrowsnest.com/.

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About Me

I love writing and books, dogs and cats, babies and grandsons, real cheesecake and fruit, country scenes and cities at night, chocolate and nuts, fireplaces and hot tubs, flowers and trees, Christmas trees and Christmas--period, research and editing, eating and hanging with my best buddy--hubby, stories that intrigue me and stories that enchant me, words of wisdom from the ancients and words of wisdom from children, and certainly not least: God and his mercy.